Twice as nice: Comcast doubles the speed of low-income Internet Essentials program

August 9, 2015

We’ve doled out a lot of compliments over the years for Internet Essentials, Comcast’s high-speed internet service for low-income Americans. And now we’re going to do it again, because the Philadelphia-based cable TV giant has made this outstanding program even better by doubling its speed from 5 Megabytes per second to 10 Mbps.

10 Mbps download is fast!

Comcast is also starting a pilot program to determine if and how to extend Internet Essentials to needy senior citizens. Click Here to read more about that program.

Of course, this increase still doesn’t meet the Federal Communications Commission’s definition of “broadband,” which is a preposterously high 25 Mbps, but in the real world in which most of us live, 10 Mbps is crazy fast. Unless you spend the day downloading the latest Hollywood films or playing online video games, its fast enough to handle anything else you may do on the internet.

After all, the name of Comcast’s program is Internet Essentials and 10 Mbps is definitely all you need to handle your online essentials.

For example, here at CheapInternet.com we pay full price for AT&T’s U-Verse service and it delivers 6 Mbps. That’s fast enough for us to send and receive thousands of emails a day and conduct an entire internet-based business. In addition, we suspect that Carl, our latest college intern, spends most of his day downloading YouTube videos instead of completing his actual assignments. And 6 Mbps is fast enough to handle it all.

With that background in mind, you can understand why we think the FCC was completely out of touch with reality when it recently upped its definition of “high-speed” to 25 Mbps.

Even better, current Internet Essentials customers won’t need to jump through any complicated technical hoops to get the fast speed. All you need to do is shut down your current modem and then restart it. Voila! Your speed will have magically doubled.

Now get a free wireless router with your order

But Comcast wasn’t satisfied with merely upping the speed of Internet Essentials. It’s added another very nice touch for which we give them major kudos.

A few months ago we criticized Comcast for developing this terrific program to bring high-speed internet to low-income Americans, but then hobbling them by charging them full price for the piece of equipment necessary to connect to the internet.

The company must have been listening, because in the same announcement that touted the new, higher speed, the company also announced that it will now offer each qualifying household a free wireless router. The wireless router offer is being made to all new customers and is also being made retroactively to all current customers.

Are you eligible for this great Internet Essentials program?

More than 500,000 low-income American households including more than two million residents have already signed up for Comcast’s Internet Essentials program. The eligibility requirements are relatively simple and straight forward, so you may be eligible, too.

To be eligible, a family must have at least one child eligible to participate in the National School Lunch Program. And that includes students in all public, parochial and private schools plus homeschool students.

Please note the word eligible in that definition. It means your child doesn’t need to actually participate in the school lunch program. They just need to qualify for the program. It may be a minor point because most children who are eligible for the program do participate in it, but we always feel its worth pointing out this distinction.

In some cases, your child may not even need to be eligible for the school lunch program for you to qualify for Internet Essentials. If 50% of the children enrolled in any school are eligible for the school lunch program, then ALL children in that school are eligible, which means they’re also eligible for Internet Essentials.

Cool, huh?

Finally, it’s also worth noting that Comcast is not increasing the price of Internet Essentials despite the fact that it’s doubling the speed and now offering its customers free modems. It still costs just $9.95 per month, which is a huge savings on regular internet service which often costs $60 or more per month.

Comments

Please help my a have a handicap grandson thought gr8 has the mentally of a 6 days I’ve been taking care or him for 1yrs I home teah him he love the tv and computer I must get help to turn this back on please help me sncerely Lillian Gibson he will be returning to his mom I 2wks

There are a number of low-income internet plans available, Lillian. But you need to check them all out carefully to find the one that fits your needs best. Here’s where you can find info on all of them:

I am over 65 and on SNAP and SCRIE (the NYC rent capping service for low income senior citizens). Does this qualify me for Comcast’s Internet Essential? Does it serve my area code 10014? How do I apply for internet only?

I was get comcast internet about two maonths ago.in for low income,that the fist time Internet is very goog when I look information on Saigon TV 57.7.com for every day.So some days near the Internet Comcast were very weak some time its stop no more working. when I looking information om TV.How I can fix it or show for me what can I do it???I wait you explan to me know.Thank you very much.God Bless all you.

Good question, Kitty. We have scoured the internet looking for the answer to that question in the past and there is virtually nothing on the internet about it. The little info we did find was a bit contradictory. The simplest way to answer that question — as we understand it — is that data is unlimited, but at some point they throttle down the speed considerably. This is the company’s way to keep customers from eating up bandwidth by downloading everything Netflix (for example) has to offer. From the company’s point of view, this program is intended as a basic internet plan intended to help adults get jobs and help kids do their homework, and was never intended as a way for people to sit around all day playing online games and watching movies.

I had Comcast in California. Was very ill and was put in a nursing home. My bill was paid. And my equipment was returned to the office in Modesto.CA. But they wanted me to personally return it. That was impossible.

My daughter in Louisiana moved me to be living with her. We don’t have cable and I miss my programs. I will be 86 Friday and am looking for TV and Internet that is a low rate for very low income seniors.

Although Comcast offers service in several Louisiana cities, Mary, it appears that you will not be able to get an Internet Essentials account because, from what you said, you have broken several of their rules. In order to qualify for Internet Essentials: • You cannot have been a Comcast internet subscriber in the last 90 days. If you want to get Internet Essentials, you are going to need to cancel (if you contract allows) your service and call Internet Essentials to sign up after three months. • You cannot have a Comcast bills that is over 12 months past due. However, if you have an overdue bill from just within the last 12 months, Comcast has recently changed the rules and will accept you as an Internet Essentials customer, provided you agree to the payment plan they work up to pay off the late bills. • You cannot have any unreturned equipment.

But above and beyond that, you don’t qualify for Internet Essentials because the primary way to qualify is to have a child who qualifies for the National School Lunch Program. We’re pretty sure we’d have read about you in the newspaper if, at age 86, you have a child that young.

Maybe you can start by clicking on the “States” link at the top of this page. It will show you a list of all the low-income, cheap, free, and municipal Internet plans available in your state.

Click on each of those programs to find a deal for which you qualify and fits your needs.

I would like to have information about this plan. I live in Hillsborough county. specially in Tampa. and I have my son is at school and most of time, need internet to get his homework and project. Is there any contract and how much it gonna be monthly including taxes. My Zip Code is 33610

Since living in Georgia now 9 years, I have NEVER been so abused as a “low income seniors! What I read above, does NOT exist in Atlanta, Georgia! I’ve been charged for services I didn’t have,several times when I moved into HUD HOUSING!!! Their average for a low income senior is well OVER A hundred dollars for BASIC LIMITED SERVICES OF INTERNET AND BASIC, BASIC CABLE AT LOW speeds.Right now, I just sent back their package to me which on the bill, they charged me $120.00!!! For services I never got as promised. I have found them outrageous in charges NEVER discussed with out agreed on with me. When I submitted my question for low-income seniors internet, I COULD NOT BELIEVE YOU WERE COMPLIMENTING COMCAST.

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